Chapter 23
The next morning, Rarity was up early and had made coffee and put the dishes away from the dishwasher from last night’s dinner. She was about to make some cookies or something when Sam came in from her bedroom, still dressed in a short pj’s outfit. “You’re too loud in the morning.”
“We need to get to the hotel by eight.” She poured her friend a cup of coffee. “Besides, I slept in this morning. Usually, I’m up at five on a weekday.”
“This isn’t a weekday for you, it’s part of your weekend and mine,” Sam reminded her.
Rarity sat at the table next to her. “I know, but I keep running all the things I know about Talia in my head. I know she’s the one who killed Mason.
It all fits. He thought they were getting back together.
When Drew talks to the lawyer, I bet she’s his heir.
Bret thought he and Talia were an item. He even went looking for her when she came to Sedona without him. ”
“I think that’s called circumstantial evidence.” Sam sipped her coffee. “Besides, she was at that dinner.”
“Which started two hours late, according to Gretchen. Okay, then add in the spider. She had to know about the shots. They were together for years,” Rarity pointed out.
“And I found the card with Jax’s name on it where she was hanging out on Saturday.
And they shared ownership of Oscar. Although why anyone would want a pet spider is beyond me. ”
Sam just shrugged, apparently not convinced.
Rarity’s phone rang. The caller ID said it was Katie. “Hey, what’s going on?”
“You need to hear this,” Katie said. Then Rarity heard a voice speaking in the background, “Tell her.”
“Katie?”
“No, ma’am, this is Todd. From the spider store?
Well, I told Charity about what I’d told you and I realized maybe I forgot something.
So she told me to tell Katie. And anyway, here we are.
Mason Pike came into the store alone, but I saw Talia Brooks in the car, waiting.
I guess she didn’t want to come in. A lot of women don’t like visiting the store. ”
“You’re sure it was Talia?” Now Rarity had one more piece to her puzzle.
“Definitely. She was hot in the alien spider movie, but man, she’s a lot older now. Still hot but not scorching like she was. Well, she was dressed in shorts and a tank rather than the one-piece she wore in the movie. That showed everything.”
Rarity heard “Dude!” in the background.
Todd chuckled and continued. “Anyway, she was there with Mason. I thought you meant came into the store, but I guess I should have told you the whole story. I’m sorry. Here’s Katie.”
Rarity waited for Katie to speak.
“They came over this morning, Todd and Charity. He had told her about seeing Mason and Talia but only telling you about Mason. So she dragged him over so I could call you,” Katie explained. “I’m sorry.”
“No worries. This is perfect. It puts Talia in the picture again. Anyway, I’ll see you Thursday? Or are you working today?”
“Thursday. Shirley has the store today.” Katie paused and added, “But I will be at the book club on Tuesday night.”
After she got off the phone, Rarity held up the paper where she’d been taking notes. “This proves Talia knew about the shots.”
“Or she thought he was there to get spider food or get a new spider or something.” Sam shook her head. “I still think it’s thin.”
“Okay, I’ll take it to the sleuthers. Maybe someone else has something else that will solidify this so we can give it to Drew.” Rarity finished her coffee and put her cup in the sink. “I really don’t want to let Drew win this one.”
Sam laughed as she followed her out of the kitchen. “You know it’s not a competition, right?”
As Rarity dressed in some of Sam’s clothes, she thought that her friend was dead wrong on that point. Rarity wanted the sleuthers to win.
* * *
At the hotel, Sam stayed in the lobby when Rarity went upstairs to room 321. She had the envelope with the movie in hand. She walked down the hallway, dodging a maid’s cart, hearing the vacuum in the room she was cleaning. When she got to the room, she thought she heard voices inside.
She realized the door had been left open, using the security guard bar as a doorstop. She went to knock but then heard Talia’s voice. The two of them were fighting. Again.
What in the world was going on?
“I didn’t kill him so you could give away all the money. What were you thinking setting up not only an allotment for this crappy festival but the local students? That’s coming out of your share,” Talia told Jane.
Rarity called Drew on her phone and turned down her volume so they wouldn’t hear him answer. Hopefully he could hear them.
“Watch your tone. Right now, it’s all my share.
And who are you going to complain to? I didn’t kill him.
I was just in the will. And if you say anything different, I’ll say you’re crazy.
That you were jealous of my relationship with Mason.
That he loved me enough to put me in the will, even if I didn’t look like you,” Jane said, or at least Rarity assumed it was Jane.
“You’re lucky we did this now. If we’d waited and he’d gotten that local girl interested in his sorry butt, she’d have the money and that lovely house of hers.
” Talia paused a moment and Rarity froze.
It sounded like Talia was walking to the door, but then Rarity heard water running and realized that she must have gone into the bathroom.
Jane spoke. “I wish I would have hit her that day in the truck. Anyway, sponsoring the festival was a goodwill gesture. No one’s even questioned us, not seriously.
Later today, we’ll be back home. I’m keeping the house, by the way.
If there’s anything in it you want, let me know because I’m going to trash his stuff and refurnish as soon as the estate settles.
Then I’ll give you your half and Oscar.”
“You can have the stupid spider. I want the painting in the living room, though.” Talia started listing off the items in the house that she was claiming.
Rarity saw the housekeeper coming out of another room and watching her. She put the phone to her ear and walked back to the stairs, not waiting for the elevator. When she was clear, she turned the volume back up.
“Two questions, did you get all that?” Rarity asked as she hurried down the stairs.
“Yes, and I have a squad car that should be there now. I’ll bring both of them in for questioning.
You’ll have to testify to verify my account for the judge if it goes to trial, but I’m thinking that they’re going to turn on each other.
Especially if there’s a deal on the table. What’s the second question?”
“You already answered it. I’m collecting Sam and we’re going to Carole’s for breakfast. Let me know if you need us.”
Drew barked out a laugh. “I think you’ve done enough. I take it you still have her film?”
“I’ll leave it at the front desk for Jane. She’ll probably not pick it up, but that won’t be my problem anymore.” She paused. “I knew Talia was involved, but I never guessed Jane. I felt bad for her.”
“Sometimes emotions clog our reason,” Drew said. “I’ve got to go. Get out of there as fast as possible.”
Rarity caught Sam’s gaze and pointed to the front desk. By the time Sam caught up to her, Rarity had left the envelope for Jane in room 321 with the clerk. “We need to leave, now.”
As they pulled the car out of the parking lot, she saw the police cars come into the lot. They didn’t have their lights or sirens on. Sam stared at the cars then looked at Rarity. “Where to?”
“Breakfast at Carole’s. I’ll tell you what happened over waffles.”
* * *
Rarity had to repeat the story at the sleuthing club meeting the next day and after she did, she held up a book. “Here’s next week’s book. I’ve already called Deb and Ginny and let them know that we’re back to being a book club.”
“Well, I guess there’s nothing else to do but celebrate. Our Darby isn’t being stalked and the killer, or killers in this case, are in custody.” Shirley had her knitting out and was working on a blanket. “Who tried to run over Darby, by the way?”
“According to Talia, that was all Jane. She hated that Mason was interested in a relationship with someone who looked like Talia.” Rarity shrugged as she watched Darby turn red. “She had found the keys to the truck and took advantage of the kid’s stupidity.”
“Drew matched both women’s fingerprints on the syringe, so we have actual physical evidence.
And Jane’s fingerprints were in the truck.
Jax and Todd have confirmed that Talia was with Mason when he bought his supply for the visit.
And Jax, after promising to shut down his side business, has been rehired at the store. He was staying at his mom’s.”
“Jane must have come in the front door when we were all in the back. I bet Mason was expecting her, that’s why the door was unlocked,” Rarity said, looking at Jonathon for confirmation. “He must have asked her to come and bring his supply. After he found Darby. The man was a letch.”
“I hear the police confiscated all of Jax’s venom supply and had his spiders put down,” Malia said. “Isn’t that just stepping on them?”
“I wouldn’t want to put one of those spiders down on the floor. What if you missed?” Holly shivered. “Rarity? Is your garage clear?”
“Yes. And that fun gift wasn’t from Jax, it was Talia who did it, trying to keep me and the club from investigating Mason’s death.” Rarity turned to Jonathon, who had more of the story.
“Drew found a receipt for the fake spiders from the craft shop, and she had an assistant buy the snakes. When the assistant found out about her arrest, he came in and gave Drew the receipt. She’d told him that they were needed for a promotional event around the movie.
The studio is rereleasing it to honor Mason.
” Jonathon shook his head. “Remind me not to visit Sedona during the film festival next year.”
“What doesn’t kill us gives Jonathon something to write about,” Darby teased. “Besides, you were having fun trying to solve the mystery. And thank goodness Jane hadn’t come to get the movie sooner. Rarity wouldn’t have been in the right place at the wrong time.”
“We see through a glass, darkly,” Shirley added, then looked around the confused faces. “What? It just means we don’t know why things happen until the end.”
At the end of the night, Rarity stopped Jonathon from leaving. “I guess you’re heading back to Tucson? Edith has some books on order. Do you want them tonight? Or will you stop by tomorrow before you leave?”
“No, remember Edith’s coming up with Joanna, Manuel, and Savannah, of course, for the weekend. Drew’s having his party on Saturday. I can take them tonight, so she doesn’t forget to stop by.” Jonathon reached for the books.
As everyone headed out, she heard the door open again. Archer was there to walk her home. And he’d brought Killer with him. “Dinner’s ready at home. Are you ready to leave?”
Rarity nodded. “Let me check the back door and turn on the security system. Then I’ll be ready.”
She went through the back room, turning off lights and checking the back door lock as she looked out the window.
It was a full moon, and she could see a large plastic spider had been set on the top of the retaining wall behind her store.
Was it a thank-you from Mason? Or just a leftover from their book signing and outdoor movie night?
Either way, she wasn’t going out to gather the spider. She’d do it tomorrow. If it was still there.
“Rarity?” Archer called out.
She stepped away from the back door and headed to the security closet.
“I’ll be right out.” Silently, she added, Everything’s fine.
It’s back to normal here. But she wasn’t sure her new bookstore had ever been normal.
But that was okay, because it held family.
And friends. And community. And what else could she want?
Maybe justice. And today, that had been achieved.
It had to be enough.